Hold Me Close
by WriteToEscapeReality1309
Summary: Narnia has been ruled by Telmarines for many decades. Then, a Telmarine child is born, one that carries Aslan's Mark. She is taken away and raised by Narnians as Aslan's Heir. Years later, she decides to aid Prince Caspian and the Pevensies to restore back the peace in Narnia. But will the love of the two young men for her become a problem, destroying Narnia instead? Movie-verse.
1. Prologue

Prologue:

Nurse Elayne frantically searched for pieces of cloth while the young woman was giving birth.

The seventeen-year-old screamed painfully and tightened the grip she had on the maid's hand.

"It won't be long now, sister," the maid whispered words of comfort as Isabela took in deep breaths.

"Quickly, put a rag on her mouth!" Nurse Elayne snapped, giving the maid an old rag she'd luckily found in the bed chambers.

She shouldn't be doing this, the nurse thought as she guided the girl through the process of giving birth to her child. Isabela having the child out of wedlock and the fact that a royal knight was the baby's father made things worse for all of them.

"Keep her quiet," the old woman told the maid. Wiping some of the sweat off her forehead she muttered, "if anyone finds out about this child we are dead, Isabela."

The blonde looked at her godmother with fearsome eyes, understanding that she had to keep quiet for their sake.

Suddenly, another burst of pain coursed through her body and she bit the rag harder, trying not to scream out.

"Just a little more, dear! Push. . . a little more," Nurse Elayne told her.

Isabela did as she was told and pushed with all her might, a loud scream escaping her lips accidentally. She delivered the baby and the maid helped Elayne clean the child before wrapping it in a blanket.

The nurse was sure that someone in the castle had heard Isabela's scream, so she wasted no time in telling the maid, "Rosalia, there's a secret compartment behind the wardrobe that leads to the stables-"

"Why? What's wrong?" Isabela asked worriedly from the bed, trying to get up but that only caused her more pain.

There was hard knock on the door and the three of them froze. Fortunately, the door was locked so it earned the women a few more seconds to get the baby out of the room.

"No," cried Isabela as the maid started for the wardrobe, "at least let me hold her once."

Feeling empathy for the mother, Rosalia hesitated but Nurse Elayne urged her forward, "The wardrobe, Rosalia! Hurry, the guards are coming!"

Having no other choice, she stepped into the wardrobe. Behind, Isabela's cries were heard, "Godmother, please! Just once, please!"

"This is for the best, Isabela," Elayne went over and hugged her. "Let her go. . . let her go, dear."

"No," she sobbed and the guards burst the door open.

They wasted not time in leading them to the dungeon's cells and Isabela cried for her baby, "Adelaide! No, Adelaide!"

* * *

At the stables, Rosalia mounted on a horse and escaped the castle's grounds with the newborn child.

The night was cold and a gust of wind hit the brunette's face as the cries of the little girl warned the guards about their escape.

Rosalia held on to little Adelaide, the shouts of angry men right behind them, and she ordered the horse to go faster, heading for the forest.

The soldiers were shooting arrows and the brunette cursed under her breath, taking a sharp turn to prevent from meeting with a tree's thick trunk. Riding with one hand, as the other held the baby girl, Rosalia lost control of the horse and she fell, making sure to protect Adelaide from making contact with the ground.

Regaining her strength, she stood up, made sure the child was not hurt, and moved through the forest.

"Hush, child, hush," she cooed the crying baby, hearing the soldiers getting closer and closer.

Frightened, Rosalia looked for a place to hide the baby.

She could have easily turn in the child to the soldiers and beg for mercy, but Rosalia made a promise to her sister and she was going to protect her niece until her last breath.

But how would the child be safe if she was abandoning her? Worried and scared Rosalia prayed for a miracle, being able to see the soldiers on their horses now.

Turning around, she faced The Great Lion and a gasp escaped her chapped lips. "Oh, Great Aslan!" tears streamed down her cheeks, feeling great relief at the sight of the beautiful lion before her green eyes.

"I'm afraid we don't have much time," Aslan told her, glancing at the oncoming soldiers.

Rosalia nodded, understanding that The Great Lion could only save one. "Just save her, please," she pleaded, holding out the newborn to him.

"As you wish," Aslan took the small bundle that contained the baby with his mouth.

"Thank you, Aslan," she bowed her head and saw as The Great Lion vanished behind the trees and bushes of the forest.

* * *

Aslan came to a small clearing and settled Adelaide down carefully at the base of a tree. Before lifting his big paw and knocking on the small wooden door of the big tree, he looked at the Telmarine girl.

Doubting that the Narnians living here would welcome a Telmarine child, he placed his warm paw in the baby girl's hand she reached out with a smile and gripped it tight.

Aslan chuckled silently at the newborn's strength, predicting that she would become a great warrior someday. Finally, he slowly removed his paw from Adelaide's hand and looked at her chubby hand that was now marked with a lion's paw-print. Aslan's Mark.

Knocking at the door, Aslan looked one last time at the sleeping baby before going back into the dark and silent forest.

"Who could it be at this ungodly hour?" the badger wondered as he went to open the door.

"Don't open it!" a black-dwarf, Nikabrik, exclaimed. "It could be a Telmarine!"

The badger rolled his eyes, "Don't be foolish. Telmarines know better than to wander into the forest." He opened the door and his eyes widened immediately, "Oh, my!"

"What? What is it?" a third voice chipped in.

"It's a. . . baby. A _human_ baby!" Trufflehunter, the badger, replied.

Not believing this, Trumpkin came to the door to see for himself. His eyes widened, it was indeed a human child.

"It must be a Telmarine. . . kill it!" said Nikabrik, going over to the door too.

"You fool, see before you speak!" Trumpkin snapped at him, pointing at the baby's hand with Aslan's Mark on it. "That is a lion's paw-print. It has been blessed with Aslan's Mark. No Telmarine could carry such mark."

"We must take it in," Trufflehunter affirmed. "Aslan must want us to raise it in the Narnian ways."

"All right," Nikabrik huffed as the badger picked up the bundle and shut the door behind him, "but we can't keep calling the child 'it'."

"What should we name it then?" Trumpkin asked, looking at the baby that had now been awakened and was smiling .

After searching for something to verify the child's name, Trufflehunter found a name stitched on the child's blanket with elegant red letters.

"We should call her Adelaide," the badger announced before taking a seat at the table and giving her some warm milk.

**A/N: So I had this idea buzzing around in my head like an annoying bumble bee for months now, and I had to do something about it if I wanted it to stop ruining my sleep and taking it away. Now that I have posted the prologue, I feel a little bit better but please don't let that stop you from reviewing and telling me if I should continue! **

**Please, please, please, I need to see if you've liked it so far so I can continue it! Thank you so much for reading this story and giving it a shot and hopefully you'll review.  
**

**In case any of you were wondering, Adelaide(the main original character) will be portrayed by Sienna Guillory. You know, that chick from the movie "Eragon" (Arya, I think), or if you have seen the film "Inkheart", she plays Resa. **

**The story is a Peter/OC/Caspian love triangle but the main couple would be Peter/OC (I am willing to make a change, depending on who you guys prefer with Adelaide: Caspian or Peter. Just FYI) so please, in the future chapters, feel free to tell me know. I promise I won't get angry and yell at you like a mad-woman. lol. **

**Oh, and Adelaide is pronounced AD-_a_-layd if you are confused and went _asdfahakjgha;_ in your mind when you've read it. I know, I do that too sometimes. **

**Okay, last but not least, I want to make sure you know that any posters/banners/pictures of my OC and her outfits are on my Polyvore account. The link can be found on my profile. It's pretty easy to find, I promise, so please go check them out... and maybe like them? Okay, alright, I'm pushing it aren't I?**

**Well, just in case you've forgotten pretty please leave a review if I should continue with this story or not! And have a good day/night my darlings! Thank you for reading! :D**


	2. The Telmarine

Chapter 1:

_**18 Years Later. . .**_

The young woman sat up on the side of the bed, stretching her sore muscles from all the sword training with Trumpkin last night. Yawning, she stood up and got dressed in a pair of brown leather pants, and a white shirt that draped over her body beautifully. Putting on her brown leather, knee-high boots, she grabbed the leather vest from the small chair and tightened the belt around her waist, making her curves visible. Finally, she took a dark-brown scarf and wrapped it around her neck, her blonde-red, wavy locks of hair falling gently over her shoulders, before grabbing her sword at the last minute.

She stepped out behind the curtain of beads and a blanket that hung from the ceiling as a way to separate her room from the main room, greeting the three Narnians as she looked for her brown cloak.

"Where are you going?" the badger questioned, coming out of the kitchen with a bowl in his hands.

Adelaide smiled. Trufflehunter was definitely the cook out of the four, and he always will be.

She found her cloak and put it on, turning to the talking animal.

"We've run out of eggs. I'm going to buy some at the village," she replied casually as she put on her black gloves to conceal Aslan's Mark.

The mark was the only thing that differentiated her from the other people in Telmar. Well, that and the fact that she had porcelain white skin and light-colored hair. Her dark-green eyes and slightly slanted eyes made her look almost elvish, but other than that she looked completely human.

"The village?!" the three of them gasped, nearly having a heart-attack.

"I know, going out in the open is dangerous. . . But I promise I'll be extra-careful. I have my cloak on, the Telmarines won't even notice me," Adelaide begged.

Seeing the unchanging looks that the dwarves and the badger were giving her, she added, grabbing a loaf of bread from the table and lifting it up, "Besides, the bread's already stale and you know how Nikabrik gets when it's stale. I must go to the village to get a fresh loaf of bread, for Nikabrik's sake. . . and ours."

Trumpkin smirked at her words, shooting a glance at the unamused black dwarf, and nodded, "Dela does have a point."

Adelaide's smile grew, Trumpkin calling her by her nickname was always a good sign, and she could smell the delicious aroma of victory in the air already.

Trufflehunter considered it and finally surrendered, sighing, "All right, you can go Adelaide. But you mustn't let the Telmarines see you, promise dear?"

She grinned, "Of course I promise, and thank you."

Before she closed the door of the small home, Adelaide heard Nikabrik calling, "Don't forget the bread!"

"I won't!" she affirmed, closing the door and putting on the brown cloak's hood to cover her face.

* * *

Night had fallen and Adelaide had forgotten all about going back home as she was truly amazed by the Telmarine village and its people. It had been five years since she'd last visited the place, being only thirteen back then and not remembering most of it. She did, however, remember how upset Trufflehunter and Trumpkin were when they found out she that was gone. And Nikabrik was just blowing steam off his ears when she returned from her little escapade.

This time, having permission from her 'parents', she made sure to look at every single knick-knack in the markets. She even bought a few things that she could afford and did not forget to get eggs and bread.

Adelaide found it odd, yet relieving, that no one seemed to notice that she wasn't a Telmarine.

Thinking about it, she shrugged to herself while she walked back home. It would've been that the village had been full of people and she looked totally normal in the crowd, or maybe they didn't expect a Narnian to jump out of nowhere and attack the village, so they weren't on their guard.

_It might be possible,_ Adelaide thought to herself, _the Telmarines believe that the Narnians are extinct. If only they knew. . ._

Suddenly, the loud sound of fireworks bursting made her jump. Adelaide turned around, her eyes filled with wonder as she looked at the burst of various colors in the dark sky.

However, the joyous moment was over when she looked down from the sky and looked ahead, seeing a small army of soldiers pursuing a cloaked figure on a horse.

Quickly, she stepped aside and let the person and the angry soldiers on their horses swoosh pass her in a blur. Her mind was clouded with questions, not sure what to do about what she'd just seen. Then, Adelaide realized that the soldiers were following the stranger to the wood.

Angry men that were armed and would shoot at anything that got in their way.

"Oh no," Adelaide breathed out and she ran after the men, realizing that Trufflehunter, Trumpkin, and Nikabrik could be in danger.

* * *

Continuing to run without stopping for a breath, Adelaide reached the Shuddering Wood and came to a halt at the small clearing in front of the den.

On the ground sat the runaway, looking scared and confused by the two Narnians in front of him.

Adelaide soon realized that the runaway was the cloaked figure that was running from the soldiers earlier.

She noticed him glance at the sword that lay on the ground close to him and she immediately kicked it far from his reach, pulling out her sword instead and pointing it at him.

The two of them locked eyes for a moment, until the Telmarine glanced down at the sharp sword directed at him and he gulped.

Adelaide was still wearing her hood, so he couldn't exactly see how scared she was beneath the cloak once he looked away.

She was scared, never being so close to a Telmarine before. Sure, she'd been around dozens of them that evening, but none of them bothered to notice her much less look her way. But this one, he was staring directly at her and it was making her nervous although, in the dim moonlight, she could not make out his face so clearly.

Taking a short look around her, she noticed that Trumpkin was missing and she turned to Nikabrik, her sword still pointed at the man, as she demanded, "Where's Trumpkin?"

The dwarf opened his mouth to answer, but Trufflehunter told her, "Dela, you best go inside-"

"No!" she snapped at the badger, scared and worried that Trumpkin could be in danger. "He went to distract the soldiers, didn't he?" Silence fell when neither of them spoke, and that only made Adelaide angrier. "Answer me!" she bellowed, not meaning to shout but the thought of Trumpkin being captured by Telmarines and possibly killed made her angry.

While the three of them were distracted, Caspian desperately reached out for the white horn and grabbed it.

Adelaide sensed him moving and she turned around to see him putting a horn to his lips.

"No!" Nikabrik let out but it was too late. The Telmarine blew the horn loudly, the sound resonating throughout the woods.

Thinking fast, Adelaide turned her sword and hit him on the side of his head with its hilt. The impact was a little too hard and he fell to the floor unconscious, the horn rolling right off his hand.

Adelaide sheathed back her sword, not worrying about the passed out man in front of her and grabbed the horn.

It was cold in her hands as she traced the carved lion at its mouth.

_Beautiful,_ she thought.

Inspecting it more closely, she asked, "Isn't this Queen Susan's horn?"

Nikabrik took it from her hands, examining it as Trufflehunter stepped forward to take a closer look at the horn.

"It most certainly is, Dela," Nikabrik nodded, giving it to Trufflehunter.

Directing at the Telmarine, the badger told her, "Get him inside."

"What?" Nikabrik exclaimed, reading Adelaide's mind.

Adelaide turned her head to the man, not really liking the idea of having a Telmarine in her home, but Trufflehunter explained, "This is _Queen Susan's horn_, Nikabrik, and _he_ had it!"

"Yeah," the grumpy-looking dwarf snorted, "he probably stole it. Just like any other Telmarine!"

"He's right," Adelaide spoke up, earning a questioning look from both of them.

"Who?" the asked in unison.

"Trufflehunter," Nikabrik frowned at this. "I don't find his idea comforting either, Nikabrik, but he _was_ running away from the king's soldiers and he does have the Queen's horn."

Looking at Trufflehunter, she nodded, "The least we could do is figure out why he has Queen Susan's horn."

"Fine, but I am not getting him inside," Nikabrik grumbled, walking away from them and to the den.

Trufflehunter sighed and Adelaide told him, handing him the package of eggs and bread, "I'll get the Telmarine inside. You go and wet some cloth so I can clean his bleeding head, and some bandages."

The black and white badger chuckled, "You did go a little far with the hit, Adelaide."

She laughed too, admitting, "I do hope I didn't do any severe damage."

* * *

Once she'd gotten the Telmarine inside, Adelaide noticed that the man was much more younger than she expected. His shoulder-length hair was a dark-brown color and his skin was tan, unlike hers.

After removing his cloak and chest armor, Adelaide lowered him carefully on her bed, letting out a tired breath.

"Good gracious, aren't you a heavy thing," she said to the unconscious Telmarine, brushing strands of hair from his forehead to take a better look at the hit she'd given him.

Trufflehunter winced at the sight, handing her a bowl with warm water, cloth, and bandages for the Telmarine's head.

Adelaide thanked him and began to slowly clean his injury, careful not to wake him up or hurt him more than she already had.

"Trumpkin must have wanted us to take care of him," she said, referring to the Telmarine, "for him to go after the soldiers and risk his life."

The eighteen-year-old turned to face Trufflehunter, who was preparing a mat on the floor for her to sleep on.

"Do you think he could be the One, Trufflehunter?" she wondered. "All those stories. . . about Queen's Susan's horn. . . could they possibly be true? "

The badger looked at her, his black eyes filled with hope as he said with a nod, "I guess we will just have to wait and see, dear. . . You better go to sleep now, it's going to be a long day tomorrow."

"Yes, Trufflehunter," Adelaide finished bandaging the young man's forehead and returned the cloth and bowl to Trufflehunter.

"Goodnight, Lady," Trufflehunter said before leaving the room.

Covering the entrance with the blanket, Adelaide changed into her nightgown, keeping her eyes on the sleeping Telmarine at all times in case he woke up.

After blowing the burning candle off, she placed her head on the pillow and tried to get some sleep. With constantly worrying about Trumpkin and glancing at the Telmarine every couple of seconds, Adelaide found sleeping a difficult task, but, at last, she closed her heavy eyelids and fell into a deep slumber.

**A/N: This is the end of chapter one and I'm really really really happy to see that people reviewied and added this story to their alert list of favorites! Thank you so much, especially to those who reviewed! :D**

**For this chapter there is an outfit that Adelaide (portrayed by Sienna Guillory) wears and it is on my Polyvore account. The link to it can be found on my account, so please check it out! It would mean a lot!**

**But most importantly, please leave a review to let me know what you think of the story so far. It's finals week in school and I won't have anytime to work on two stories at once, so the more reviews I get the faster I'll upload a new chapter! :) But really, thank you so much for reading and reviewing on the prologue. **

**I hope you all have an amazing day/night! ^.^**


	3. Prince Caspian the Tenth

**Review Responses: **

**_grapejuice101_- Thank you so much for the review! Here's another chapter for you. :)**

**_snmuest_- So glad to hear that you love it. Here's the update you were waiting for. Hopefully you'll enjoy it! :)**

**_Dalonega Noquisi_- I'm so happy you love it! :D You won't have to wait long for that to happen. ;) I totally love your avatar picture by the way. It's so cool!**

**_Lucy Greenhill_- Thank you for reviewing, hun! I hope you find this chapter as great as the last. :)**

**_Br0ken-wishes_- Your review is fantastic, too! Thank you so much for reading my story and here's another update! ^.^**

**_LovingBOBThePacific_- I'm very happy to see that you like Dela! And there's no need to thank me, you're story is awesome! I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)**

**And that's wrap for the review responses! Thanks for reading and reviewing so much and I hope you like this chapter as well!**

Chapter 2:

"Dela, why don't you check on the boy. . . He should be waking up soon," Trufflehunter said to her from the kitchen, where he was currently pouring some soup into a small bowl.

"You said you were going to get rid of him," Nikabrik said from the table.

"Nikabrik, please," said Adelaide, trying not to start another argument that would end with Trufflehunter sitting on the dwarf's head. . . again.

"I said I would take care of him," Trufflehunter continued. Directing at her, he wondered, "Do you think he'll like my soup?"

She shrugged, "Everyone likes your soup."

While Nikabrik muttered, "I don't Dela hit him hard enough."

Hearing this, the badger scolded, "Nikabrik, he's just a boy!"

"Oh, not again," Adelaide sighed as the two began to argue, getting up to go see the Telmarine.

"We can't kill him now, not after bandaging his head. . . It would be like murdering a guest."

"Ah, and how do you think his friends are treating their guest?"

_Trumpkin_, Adelaide thought with sadness.

"Trumpkin knew what he was doing. It's not the boy's fault," the bagder lowered his voice, looking at Adelaide as she nodded.

Finally, Adelaide started for her room but the Telmarine bolted for the door instead. Having little time to react, she grabbed for her sword at the side of her chair and pointed at him.

"This is how you thank us? By running away?" she said to the Telmarine that reached for the closest weapon. The words came out harsher than she intended, but that didn't stop her from trying to stop the young man to leave without an explanation first.

"Stop! No! Dela, stop! Hey!" Trufflehunter shouted as she slashed her sword at the Telmarine boy, he fighting back with a fire poker.

"I told you we should've killed him when we had the chance," said Nikabrik as the frightened boy retreated to take a seat on one of the steps that lead to Adelaide's room.

Her sword was still held at his neck, threatening to cut it off if he made a move.

"But we can't," she spoke, staring right into the Telmarine's dark-brown eyes that looked almost black next to the burning fireplace.

Her words surprised Caspian, as the girl looked more like she wanted to kill him than to spare his life. She did have her sword pointed at him after all, but something in her green eyes told Caspian that she posed no threat to him. Still, he did not move or speak, but he did study the girl- Dela, he remembered.

The girl had to be no older than him, he guessed. With her strawberry-blonde hair braided back into a messy bun that was held by white, black-tipped feathers, he could see that her eyes were a soft green color that stood out against her fair, creamy-white skin. Now that she wore no cloak, he realized how her green-brown tunic dress fit her slim and slender figure so well, and it was hard for him to take his eyes off her as the black dwarf spoke again.

"We can't let them go! He has seen us!" he argued with her.

She put on a pensive look on her face before finally saying, her voice dark as she smirked, "How about I cut out those gorgeous eyes, instead? His tongue, too, while we're at it. Let's see how he can communicate without his tongue, shall we?"

Trufflehunter's eyes were as wide as the dish he dropped, not believing what Adelaide just said.

The Telmarine seemed scared out of his wits, too, but Nikabrik smirked while she tried to hold back a laugh.

Finally, not being able to it any longer, she burst out laughing, "I'm joking!"

Relief crossed the young Telmarine's features and he relaxed his tense muscles as she lowered her sword, giving him an apologetic smile before having a seat at the table where Nikabrik seemed rather disappointed that it was all a joke.

Trufflehunter picked up the wooden bowl on the floor, scolding her, "Adelaide, look what you made me do! I spent half the morning on that soup."

"Sorry, Trufflehunter. Don't worry, I will mop the mess," she replied apologetically, getting up again to get the mop and bucket.

While she mopped the floor and Trufflehunter went to get another bowl of soup for the boy, the Telmarine asked, "Wh-what are you?"

"It's funny. You'd think more people would recognize a badger when they saw one," Trufflehunter said from the kitchen, earning a smile from Adelaide as she put the mop in the bucket.

"No. No, I mean. . . you're Narnians?"

"In the very flesh and bone," Adelaide smiled, putting the bowl of hot soup at the table for him. "Here, take a seat," she offered him her seat.

He stood up from were he lay and took a seat at the small table, thanking her, and continued, "But you're supposed to be extinct."

"Well, sorry to disappoint you," Nikabrik said sarcastically. Angrily, he added, "Since when do we own a boarding house for Telmarine soldiers?"

"I'm not a soldier!" the boy defended, standing up from the chair. "I'm Prince Caspian. . . the Tenth."

Taken back, Nikabrik asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Running away," Caspian lowered his gaze to the fire, his eyes sad as he proceeded, "My uncle has always wanted my throne. I suppose I have only lived this long because he did not have an heir of his own."

Adelaide placed the mop and bucket against a wall, feeling sorry for him.

"Well," Trufflehunter looked from Caspian to Nikabrik at the table, "that changes things."

"Yes," Nikabrik nodded. For a moment, he sounded sincere, but then he added, "That means we don't have to kill him ourselves."

"Nikabrik, stop being an ass!" Adelaide blurted, tired of his mean comments towards Prince Caspian.

Offended and mad, Nikabrik raised his voice as he told her, "As opposed to how you were moments ago?"

"I was only joking," Adelaide defended herself. She pointed a finger at the black dwarf, "You, on the other hand, are being a complete-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence, as Trufflehunter interrupted, "That's enough! Or do I have to sit on both your heads?" The room went silent then.

Caspian walked to the door, Adelaide asking, "What are you doing?"

"My uncle won't stop until I'm dead," he answered and put on his vest armor.

"Wait, you can't leave! You're meant to save us! Don't you know what this is?" Trufflehunter told him, holding up the ivory horn.

Caspian looked back at the horn and everyone went silent for a moment.

Then, Adelaide said to the Prince, "Why don't you take a seat and we'll explain things?"

Reluctant, he put his things down before sitting down and letting the Narnians tell him all about Queen Susan's horn.

He listened attentively while he ate, noticing how Adelaide's smile would brighten when she talked about the Kings and Queens of Old, and he wondered how more beautiful could she be?

**A/N: This is a short chapter, I know, but it's the best I could do in the middle of studying for another final exam. Gosh, those pesky things never seem to go away! Anyway, I truly appreciate all of the reviews I've gotten so far! I've written a couple of Narnia fics a long time ago, when I totally sucked at writing, and I barely manage to get ONE review, so getting more than five is quite the magnificent surprise and. . . I won't bother you guys with my rambling anymore. **

**Don't forget, Adelaide's outfit for this chapter and the previous one are on my Polyvore account (link can be found on my profile). Please make sure you check those out, and pretty please leave a review below telling what you thought of this short chapter. **

**Thank you so much for reading/reviewing/adding this story to your list of favorites or alerts! I hope all you lovelies have an awesome day/night! :)**


	4. Lady Adelaide

**Review Responses:**

**_grapejuice101_- Thanx! I'm so happy to see that you're liking it so far and here's another chapter for you. :)**

**_Lucy Greenhill_- Hi! Thank you for the review and reading the story! I hope you're liking it so far and here's a new chapter. :)**

**_LovingBOBThePacific_- Glad to hear that you're loving the story so far! And I have to agree with you, Ben/Caspian is definitely dreamy. The perfect Prince Charming lol :)**

**_Dalonega Noquisi_- In all honesty, I blushed when I read your review. Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback! You're truly talented to have done that from scratch. I can barely paint my nails without making a mess lol :P**

**_AneeshaLOTR_- Aww *blushes* thank you for saying that! I do hope that you enjoy this chapter too dear! :)**

**_Ellie (guest)_- I'm really glad to know that you like the love triangle idea, since most people don't. And about Susan, I was actually thinking of a friend of Adelaide having a little crush on her, but I won't go into much detail on that... You'll have to read to find out ;) And thanks for reviewing and the suggestion! I hope you like this chapter as well. :)**

Chapter 3:

Caspian stopped and said, "I can hear you."

From behind the trees in the forest filled with ferns out came Trufflehunter, Nikabrik, and Adelaide.

"We just think we should wait for the Kings and Queens," said Dela as she walked out behind a tree next to Trufflehunter.

Caspian looked at her, but he dismissed her words and continued walking.

Adelaide sighed and followed him. _He could be really stubborn sometimes._

"Fine, go then! See if the others will be as understanding," the badger shouted sarcastically.

Ignoring Trufflehunter, Caspian kept moving forward.

"Or maybe I'll come with you," butted in Nikabrik, his lips curling up into a smirk. "I want to see you explain things to the minotaurs."

"That is not humorous, Nikabrik," her tone was light but she shot him a serious look that quieted him down.

Caspian stopped again, a questioning look on his features when he turned around to face them. "Minotaurs. . . they're real?"

"And very bad-tempered," added Trufflehunter.

Not skipping a beat, Adelaide nodded, "And big. Huge, really."

"What about centaurs? Do they still exist?" asked Caspian, looking down at Trufflehunter.

The badger walked, leading the group, and answered, "Well, the centaurs will probably fight at your side. But there's no telling what the others will do."

Adelaide noticed the Prince slowing down and she was going to ask what was wrong when he asked again, "What about Aslan?"

The Narnians stopped dead in their tracks to look at him with wide eyes.

Voicing her thoughts, Adelaide asked him, "How do you know all of this?"

"Stories," admitted Caspian with a small smile on his lips.

"Your father told you stories about Narnia?" she sounded surprised, but mostly curious about why the Prince's father, a Telmarine, would do that?

"No, my professor," he answered, glancing down at the ground as his smile disappeared. When he looked up again, his eyes were sad and in his voice Adelaide could detect hurt as he said, "Listen, I am sorry. These are not the kind of questions you should be asking."

She shot him a confused look but kept silent as they continued to move through the ferns.

"What is it?" Nikabrik asked as Trufflehunter sniffed the air.

"Human," he replied, Caspian turning around.

"Him?" the black dwarf pointed at the Prince.

Adelaide looked around the forest and caught the sight of several Telmarine soldiers.

She gulped, "No. . . it's them."

The tree of them turned to look at the soldiers as they readied their crossbows.

"There they are!" one of the shouted, aiming the weapons at them.

"Run!" exclaimed Trufflehunter, and they all started running.

Whiz! An arrow flew pass Adelaide's ear and she ducked her head as more arrows were fired. Some hitting the tall and skinny trees as they continued to run from the Telmarine soldiers.

Adelaide glanced back over her shoulder and saw the Telmarine soldiers approaching them.

"We can't outrun them!" she shouted at the others, her heart beating against her chest at the speed of lightning.

"Now!" a soldier shouted and fired his arrow, hitting Trufflehunter's hind leg.

"Trufflehunter!" Adelaied yelled, quickly turning around and running towards her furry friend.

"Oh no," gasped Nikabrik as she ran towards the soldiers, and started for the girl.

"Wait, I'll go!" Caspian told him and followed Adelaide.

"What are you doing?" Trufflehunter questioned as she tried to pick him up without hurting him.

"What does it look like?" she knelt down, panting.

Another arrow passed by, almost hitting her, and the badger shook his head, "No, run!"

"I fear I am much too stubborn for that, Trufflehunter," she let out a dry laugh. Suddenly, she gasped, seeing Caspian kneel beside her, "What are you doing?! Run!"

"Here, take it," Trufflehunter pulled out the horn and gave it to her, "it's more important than I am."

"No, it is not," said Adelaide as she pulled out the arrow in his leg and the badger let out a pained groan.

Taking the horn from his paws, she gave it to Caspian and told him, "Take it and run."

"No," he shook his head, "I'm not leaving without you."

_Why does he have to be so stubborn?_

"Just take it and leave!" she ordered but he didn't move.

They looked ahead, soldiers aiming their crossbows at them and ready to shoot. Suddenly, the ferns began to rustle and the Telmarines started falling one by one.

Wasting no time, Caspian picked up Trufflehunter and grabbed Adelaide from the hand and began to run.

Adelaide looked back again, the soldiers had stopped shooting at them and now they were shooting at the ground. Some of the men dropped their crossbows and drew out their swords to fight the unseen enemy at their feet.

Caspian finally stopped and handed Trufflehunter to her, saying, "Get yourselves out of here."

She opened her mouth to protest but he was already running with his sword in his hands, towards the unknown creature that was taking the Telmarine soldiers down, and she let out an irritated groan instead.

The last soldier standing slashed at the rustling ferns with this sword, fearing for his life, but he did not manage to kill the creature and he went down with a cry instead.

The three Narnians watched as Prince Caspian stared down at the rustling ferns with horror, the mysterious creature coming closer.

All movement stopped for a fraction of a second, giving Adelaide just enough to realize who was under all the green ferns.

The creature flipped out of the ferns at last and knocked Caspian down to the ground.

The rather big mouse wrapped his tail around his sword and drew it out, aiming it at the Prince.

"Choose your last words carefully, Telmarine!" the mouse spoke and Adelaide sighed while trying to hold back a silly grin.

Still pinned down to the ground, Caspian stared at the mouse, confused, "You are a mouse."

For Adelaide, it was becoming a difficult task to fight back her laughter as the young Telmarine stated the obvious.

The two-feet tall mouse sighed and said, "I was hoping for something a little more original. . . Come on, pick up your sword."

"Uh," Caspian eyed the sword next to him and shook his head, "no thanks."

"Pick it up!" ordered the mouse. "I will not fight an unarmed man."

"Which is why I will live longer if I choose not to cross blades with you, noble mouse," Caspian stared back at him, scared, and Adelaide chuckled slightly for who wouldn't be afraid of a talking mouse that carried sharp blade.

"I said I will not fight you," the furry creature narrowed his eyes at him. Pointing his small rapier at Caspian's face, he told him, "I did not say I'll let you live!"

Seeing that this had to stop, Adelaide rose from the fern-covered ground and said to her friend, "Reepicheep, please, stay your blade."

Surprised, the mouse looked up to the three Narnians in front of him and gave her a small bow, "My Lady, pardon me, but I trust you have a good reason for this untimely interruption."

From the ground, Caspian looked confused as to why Reepicheep had just addressed Adelaide as 'My Lady.'

Although Adelaide did not like for her friends to be address by her title, she gave the mouse a small curtsy.

Standing up straight, Adelaide nodded, "He's the one who blew the horn."

Reepicheep's eyes widened in surprise at the Telmarine. "What?"

From behind the trees, four centaurs came over the hill.

One of the was Glenstorn as he spoke, "Then let him bring it forward. This is the reason we have gathered."

Reluctant, Reepicheep sheathed back his sword and hopped off Caspian's chest.

Adelaide offered him her hand and Caspian took it, pulling himself up and dusting off his dirty clothes.

Turning to the centaurs, Adelaide smiled and greeted them with another curtsy, "Glenstorm, Ironhoof, Suncloud, Rainstone, I am delighted to see you."

The four centaurs bent their waist forward all at once and Glenstorm, the father of the other three centaurs, greeted, "As well as we, Lady Adelaide."

Adelaide felt her cheeks reddened and she said, "It's simply Adelaide." Speaking to all the Narnians in the forest and even Prince Caspian, who appeared to be confused at the moment, she added, "Dela, if you please."

They apologized to her and kept moving, Trufflehunter refusing to be carried by Adelaide when she offered to help him.

Caspian walked beside Adelaide and finally asked, raising an eyebrow at her, "Lady Adelaide?"

Adelaide laughed, realizing why Caspian had been so quiet for the past few minutes. He had been building up the courage to ask her why Reepicheep and Glenstorm had addressed her as royalty.

For a moment she didn't answer, and the Prince didn't think she would either.

But, at last, she spoke, adding a playful and mocking tone to her voice,"I am sorry, but these are not the type of questions you should be asking."

Caspian frowned at what he'd said earlier, and began to apologize, "Please, forgive me, I did not intend to-"

"You're forgiven," she smiled and he did the same. "And to answer your question. . ." Adelaide held out her hand, the one he had grabbed her by earlier while they escaped the soldiers, and turned it over so the Prince could see a birthmark that looked like a lion's paw-print on her palm.

Caspian stared at it, his dark-brown eyes wide with amazement as she explained, "This is Aslan's Mark. I've been bearing it for as long as I can remember, and because of this mark, I am known as Aslan's Heir. Or Lady Adelaide, as you already figured out."

"Aslan's Heir?" he asked as they walked side by side.

"Yes. I am to help the Kings and Queens of Old restore back the peace in Narnia once Queen Susan's horn has been blown again. And you happened to do exactly that not a couple of nights ago. . .," she added.

Looking at Prince Caspian, she smirked, eager to learn more about the Telmarine, "I believe it's your turn."

Without hesitation, Caspian told her about his childhood and his life as the Prince of Telmar, and they soon engaged in a long conversation as they followed the Narnians to Dancing Lawn.

**A/N: Whoa, that was very much longer than I expected it to be! So, who liked the little bonding part with Caspian and Dela? Is anyone excited for her to meet Peter? Oh, I know I am! lol. :P So there you have it, the reason why Adelaide carries Aslan's Mark. I'm thinking about making her Princess at the end of this story, should I? Let me know what you guys think, please! **

**Finals are officially over, so I'll be working on this story extra-hard and it'll probably get much much better than this. (I have so many things planned for this story, trust me it'll get better!) A great, amazing, and humongous thanks to all of you who have reviewed so far and those who also added my story to their list of alerts/favorites! Really, I can't thank y'all enough.  
**

**The outfit Adelaide wear during this chapter is the same she wore on the last one, just to make that clear. **

**And talking about making things clear, the plot of this story is NOT MINE! I do not own Narnia, any dialogue, the plot, or the characters! Those belong to their respectful owners. But, I do own Adelaide and any more characters that I make up as well as any minor tweaks I make to the story. All in all, I'm not making any kind of profit with this story. This is just for the fun of it, it is a Fanfic after all. :)**

**Again, thanks for reading and reviewing. I wish you lovelies a wonder day/night! ^.^**


	5. The Council

**Review Responses: **

**_grapejuice101_- I hope you love this chapter as well, hun. And thank you so much for the review! :)**

**_acompletenerd_- Thank you for reading and reviewing! And you're right, Caspian and Dela would be heartbroken if Susan and Peter leave so the best option is to have Dela and Caspian together like you said, but I'm going to give Peter/Dela a chance before deciding who ends up with who. I hope you continue reading this story and, again, thank you so much for the review! :)**

**_Dalonega Noquisi_- You put a smile on my face, thank you for the wonderful reviews! I can't wait for Peter to show up either, but luckily he comes in the next chapter. I'm also really looking forward to write Caspian jealous lol. And don't worry, I have something big planned for those two ;)**

**_LovingBOBThePacific_- Hi, thanks for the review! I'm so happy that you enjoyed the previous chapter and hopefully you'll enjoy this one also. :D**

**_Lucy Greenhill_- Thank you for the review darling! And here you have another chapter, hope you like it. :)**

**_dream lighting_- Thanks for reviewing and yes, I will finish this story and I might write a sequel. In a way, Caspian and Dela will end up falling for each other, but not just yet. :)**

**_Crazy4Oreos_- I couldn't help to read your pen name and wonder if you like Oreos with milk or not? Anyway, thank you so much for reviewing and loving the story so far! :)**

Chapter 4:

Soft pinks and radiant oranges covered the sky as the sun was beginning to set in the forest. No one talked, the distant sound of the chirping birds and the slight air breeze being the only sound in the lively forest as they made their way to Dancing Lawn.

Behind her, Adelaide heard a small whimper of pain and she glanced behind her shoulder at Trufflehunter, worried that his leg was hurting.

The badger saw her staring at him with concern and he smiled a reassuring smile before she finally turned around to face the centaurs.

It wouldn't long before they reached Dancing Lawn, and to Dela that was a great relief for Nikabrik couldn't keep quiet and stop complaining about his hurting feet. She, too, found herself tired and hungry by the time they had finally reached Dancing Lawn.

It was a beautiful field and was big enough to hold a large amount of Narnians. Perfect enough for a celebration, or any party or event for that matter. And indeed, Dancing Lawn had once been a place where Narnians had come together to dance, laugh, feast, and have a good time. . . but one anymore. Not since the Telmarines had invaded and taken over Narnia, leaving them with no other option than to hide in a place that had once brought joy to their people.

Now, Dancing Lawn was a refuge for the few Narnians that were still alive and didn't have a safe place to hide from the Telmarines.

As the small group came forward to the middle of the big clearing, Dela noticed that all her her Narnian friends had gathered to hear what The One had to say.

Caspian's eyes widened at the large number of angry Narnians before him and he glanced at Adelaide, who gave him a small smile.

The Prince looked around at the stones that served as platforms for the creatures to stand or sit on and he started to worry, seeing the unsmiling and angry expressions on their faces.

He was supposed to lead these people, he thought, but how will he be able to do that when they hated him?

"They are not going to listen to me," Caspian shook his head, speaking to Adelaide.

"You are right," Dela nodded, meeting his eyes and he only got worse. Seeing how nervous Caspian was, she smiled, "But you must not let that get in your way."

"How will I do that?" Caspian stared at her, pleading with his eyes for her to help him.

Sighing, Adelaide thought back to this morning and she answered with a smile, "Show them that you are Prince Caspian the Tenth, and not some Telmarine soldier. All they want is your trust, Caspian. They-" she paused before correcting, "_we_ want to see that there is still hope for us, for Narnia. All you have to do is convince them that they can trust you, but first you must trust yourself. . . Do you trust yourself enough to do this, Caspian?"

He looked at her green eyes, and asked with a serious tone to his voice, "Do you?"

"Yes," she replied after a while and he nodded, grateful for her sincerity, before turning to the loud and angry mob of Narnians.

"Thief!"

"Murderer!"

"Liar!"

"Kill him!"

"You must trust yourself, Caspian," Adelaide whispered, as she saw how frightened he was when he was faced by the outbursts of her people, and went to take a seat one of the the stones.

* * *

Several minutes had gone by and the Narnians were still shouting at the young man in the middle of the clearing, refusing to let Caspian speak up.

Stepping down from a stone and towards the young prince, Nikabrik pointed at the magic horn in Caspian's hand, "All this horn proves is that they've stolen yet another thing from us!"

"I didn't steal anything," Caspian told them, but they didn't listen.

"Didn't steal anything?" a minotaur, pointed his weapon angrily at Caspian. "Shall we list the things the Telmarines have taken?"

"Our homes!" Windmane, Glenstorm's wife, started.

Dela was shocked at the aggression of her friends towards the young man as several of them continued to shout.

"Our freedom!"

"Our lives!"

"You stole Narnia!"

She was infuriated by all the things they accused Caspian for. What bothered her the most was that they hadn't even given him the chance to defend himself and explain things. However, even if she was fuming mad, she did not say word and decided to let Caspian speak for himself.

"You hold me accountable for all the crimes of my people?" he raised his voice for all of them to hear. And they did, for they silenced down.

"Accountable and punishable," Nikabrik was the one to break the silence, doing it with very harsh words.

"That's words from you, dwarf," Reepicheep scoffed, "Or have you forgotten that it was your people who fought alongside the White Witch?"

The black dwarf brushed off the mouse's rapier away from him with his hands and turned to face Caspian, "And I'll gladly to it again if it would rid us from these barbarians!"

"Silence!" Dela's voice boomed and all was still in Dancing Lawn. Looking at Nikabrik and all the Narnians she told them, her voice calm and collected but loud enough so everyone would hear her words clearly,"Our anger and hatred towards the Telmarines has gone too far. Far enough that we think that bringing the White Witch back would be better for Narnia."

At this, the crowd gasped and they began to shout but she finished, "At this point I would advice you, my friends, that you choose your words carefully and not let yourselves be blinded by the hatred you hold for the Telmarines, those who, not in a million years, can compare themselves to the dark and evil power of the White Witch."

Trufflehunter, feeling much better, came forwards, "Some of you may have forgotten, but we badgers remember well, that Narnia was never right except when a son of Adam was king."

"He's a Telmarine!" Nikabrick exclaimed. "Why would we want him as our king?"

"Because I can help you," Caspian said to them. "Beyond these woods, I am a prince," his eyes found Adelaide and she let out a small smile while she listened, "the Telmarine throne is rightfully mine. Help me claim it, and I can bring peace between us."

"It is true," Caspian turned around to realized that is was Glenstorm who had spoken. "The time is ripe. I watch the skies, for it is mine to watch as it is yours to remember, badger," the centaur stopped pacing to announce, "Tarva, the Lord of Victory, and Alambil, the Lady of Peace have met, and here a son of Adam has come forth to offer us back our freedom."

"Is it possible?Do you really think there could be peace? Do you? I mean, really?" Pattertwig blurted out, looking at Caspian with hope-filled eyes.

Adelaide's smile grew wider as Caspian looked up to the talking squirrel on a tree's branch and moved around to face the Narnians.

He had finally gotten someone to see hope and now he was trying to see everyone else see it too, as he proceeded with his speech, "Two days ago, I didn't believe in the existence of talking animals, or dwarfs, or centaurs. Yet, here you are. . . in strength in numbers we Telmarines could never have imagined. Whether this horn is magic or not, it brought us together. And together, we have a chance to take back what is ours."

Caspian stopped to hold up Queen Susan's Horn, facing Glenstorm and Adelaide.

"If you will leads us, then my sons and I offer you our swords," Glenstorm drew out his sword and not moments later did Adelaide and the rest of the centaurs, even Windmane, held out their swords to the Prince.

The rest of Dancing Lawn drew out their swords, Reepicheep bowing down to Caspian, "And we offer you our lives. . . unreservedly."

"Miraz's army would not be far behind, sire," Trufflehunter said, the Narnians putting down their swords.

"If we are to be ready for them, we must hurry to find soldiers and weapons. I am sure they will be here soon," Caspian's dark-brown eyes met those soft-green eyes of Adelaide, thanking her for her help.

Adelaide gave a short nod, receiving his thanks, and said, "I suggest Aslan's How for our stronghold, but I cannot think of where we can get our weaponry."

A few suggestions were offered but none of them were good enough for Caspian, until Pattertwig exclaimed, "Oh, I was passing by Fords of Beruna yesterday, collecting nuts, when I saw the Telmarines working on the bridge and I noticed they had set a camp. We could get our weapons from there!"

Immediately, Reepicheep started to put down his offer, "Pattertwig, that is certainly the most-"

"Brilliant idea!" Adelaide chipped in and she was shot crazy looks from the Narnians. Sighing, she explained to them, "We have the element of surprise. The Telmarines are not expecting an attack this soon," she turned to Caspian, "I say a small group of us stay behind to gather weapons while the others proceed to Aslan's How."

"That settles it, then," Caspian nodded in conformation. "Who volunteers to stay behind?"

* * *

One day later at the Fords of Beruna...

In the darkness of the night it was almost impossible to see anything, but luckily the Telmarines had set up a fire in their camp and they were able to light the way to the wagons at the other side of the camp.

The river's running water and a few voices of working men could be heard from afar, Dela finding such sounds helpful so Gustus and her could sneak up on the two soldiers that seemed to be playing a sort of game with tiny squares of paper.

The faun drew out his sword, ready to slash at the Telmarine's head from behind the piled up tree trunks but Dela stopped her friend, remembering Caspian's orders to not kill anyone tonight.

Instead, she grabbed two medium-sized rocks and weighed them in her hands before aiming them at the soldiers' necks and throwing them with mighty force. Gustus and Dela hid back behind the pieces of lumber and heard the clattering of two helmets hitting the floor, only to resurfaced to look at the unconscious soldiers.

Gustus covered his mouth with his hands and made a chirping sound that sounded like a bird in the dead of night.

Hearing the signal, a group of Narnians came out of hiding and made their way silently to the five wagons. They all separated into five groups in the process and began to empty the wagons of their weapons quickly.

They made a bee line all the way back into the woods, handing the weapons to one another until they successfully emptied the five wagons in about half a hour or so.

Dela led the Narnians back into the woods, cautious to not let the Telmarines see them, and she glanced back to realize that Caspian was left behind.

He appeared to be carving something on a wagon's door when she hissed at him, "What are you doing?"

"I am leaving a message, for my uncle," Caspian replied finishing carving 'You were right to fear the woods -X' onto the wooden door.

"Well, hurry!" prompted Adelaide, seeing the Telmarines that lay on the ground starting to wake up from their unconsciousness.

**A/N: Ohmygosh, thank you so much for the reviews so far! I didn't think this story would be this successful and all of you make me so super duper happy with your wonderful feedback! **

**Okay, the people have spoken and most of you have decided that you would like Dela with Caspian better, so I've been thinking of a way that I could make that possible without having Peter out of the picture because I really really _really_ want to have Dela and Peter together and I might do a sequel for The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie involving Dela and Caspian. Like I said before, I have big plans for this story and it does get better so I hope you continue reading it! **

**Lastly, I wish you all a wonderful day/night! ^.^  
**


	6. The Kings and Queens of Old

**Review Responses: **

**_grapejuice101_- It seems like that time has arrived. :) Thanks for the review, I apologized for not updating sooner.  
**

**_Lucy Greenhill_- Thank you so much for the review! And here you have another chapter, hope you like it (even if it's late). :)**

**_LovingBOBThePacific_- Oh my gosh, I love you so much! Thank you for the amazing reviews you've left, they make me really happy. ^_^**

**_Crazy4Oreos_- Aww, thanks for the cookie *devours it*  
I really want Susan to have someone too, so I'll see what I can do about it. And I totally love Adeler as Peter/Adelaide's ship name! For Caspian/Adelaide I was thinking Despian (like Dela and Caspian) but I couldn't decide on one for Peter/Adelaide. Yours is awesome, thanks for telling me! *gives you a big hug* I hope you like this chapter as well! :)**

**_Dalonega Noquisi_- Thank you for the wonderful review, I love reading them! I'm sorry for not updating sooner, and hopefully you'll enjoy the chapter. :)  
**

**_BlueGreen216- _Thanks for the review! :) I hope you don't hate me for the late update, but here it is. Finally!**

**_acompletenerd_- Your feedback has helped me so much in deciding where this story is heading. Thank you so so so much! And Lucy and Dela are definitely going to become goof friends. :)  
**

**Guest(1)- I'm so happy to see that you're enjoying the story! I do feel sorry for not updating sooner, but here is the next chapter! Thank you for reviewing! :)**

**_nadikeismati- _(God, I hope I spelled that write. My apologies if I didn't.) Thank you so much for thinking this about my story, you have brought a smile to my face by doing so, and for that you're amazing! :)  
**

**Guest(2)- Thanks! Haha, everyone seems to think that about Dela and Caspian too! Even I have started to like the idea as well. Anyway, thank you for reviewing and I hope that you enjoy this chapter dear. :)**

Chapter 5:  


She felt the small thud on her head and winced, looking up at the trees while rubbing her head.

Seeing the squirrel looking down at her from a tree's branch, she reacted, "Patterwig, watch were your nuts land, will you?"

Patterwig sent her an apologetic look, "Sorry, my lady."

"It's Dela, Patterwig. How many times do I-" she stopped and sighed, her friend failing to hear her as he searched for more nuts to eat.

The clash of two swords were heard and a young girl's voice shouting, "No! Stop!"

Adelaide shared glances with Nikabrik and Trufflehunter, before drawing her sword and running towards the source of the angry shouting.

Soon enough, Dela and the rest of the Narnians found themselves staring at Prince Caspian, who holding a sword at- Dela thought- a Telmarine boy. Well, not exactly a boy for she noticed that he was about as tall as Caspian.

The young man took his eyes away from Caspian and looked around, outnumbered by the Narnians that had come out of hiding and were aiming their weapons at him.

He stopped for a second to stare at Adelaide, her breath catching in her throat at the sight of him.

He was fair-skinned and his blond hair was swept across his forehead in a way that made stormy blue eyes stand out agaisnt his handsome features, and Adelaide began to doubt him being a Telmarine. She also noticed that the material of his clothing was expensive and more fitting for a sovereign than a soldier.

Finally, he turned his attention to Caspian, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion as he realized, "Prince Caspian?"

"Yes," Caspian nodded, glancing at Adelaide before looking at him with a harsh look in his eyes, "and who are you?"

"Peter!" another girl exclaimed, this one older than the little girl who she stood next to.

Another boy came running to the scene, too, and stood close to the girls as Trumpkin appeared from behind the big rocks.

Adelaide's heart gave a leap of joy, sending a smile to the red-dwarf who was safe and unharmed. Despite him being tired from the long trip and the four kids nagging at him constantly, Trumpkin managed to return her smile.

Returning back to the matter at hand, Adelaide turned her attention to the young man as Caspian let out, "High King Peter?"

"I believed you called," he gave him a smug smile.

"Yes, but. . . I thought you'd be older," Caspian admitted, Dela mentally agreeing with him as she continued looking at King Peter.

Not appreciated the comment, Peter took a step back, "Well, if you'd like, we could come back in a few years."

"No!" Caspian said and Peter stopped to face him again. "No, that's alright. You're just. . . you're not exactly what I expected," Caspian finished, looking up at his three siblings.

"Neither are you," King Edmund spoke, eying the huge minotaur who twitched his ears in response.

"A common enemy unites even the oldest of foes," Trufflehunter explained.

"We have anxiously awaited your return, my liege. Our hearts and swords are at your service," Reepicheep went up to the High King and bowed.

Looking at the furry creature, Queen Lucy whispered to Queen Susan, "Oh my gosh, he is so cute!"

"Who said that?" exclaimed Reepicheep and the girl apologized immediately, feeling guilty about offending the mouse's honor.

Reepicheep realized who had spoken and told her with a softer tone, "Oh, uh,your majesty. With the greatest respect. . . I do believe courageous, courteous, or chivalrous might more befit a knight of Narnia."

As he sheathed back his rapier, Peter looked down at Reepicheep with a smile, "Well, at least we know some of you can handle a blade."

Caspian tightened his jaw at the High King's comment, Adelaide realizing that High King Peter was referring to Caspian.

She found it a bit rude and made a mental note to get back at the High King's word by challenging to a duel later as Reepicheep beamed at the complement, "Yes, indeed. And I have recently put it to good use acquiring weapons for your army, sire."

"Good," Peter nodded and turned back to Prince Caspian, "because we're going to need every sword we can get."

"Well then, you'll probably be wanting yours back," Caspian retorted, holding out the sword in his hands to him, and feeling please with himself when Peter took his sword and walked off unamused.

* * *

The sun had already started to set as Peter and Caspian led the Narnians to Aslan's How.

Having already introduced herself to Edmund, Susan, and Lucy (as they insisted to not be addressed by their title), Adelaide took an apple from a tree and handed it to Lucy.

The twelve-year-old thanked her for the fruit and took a bite out of it. Looking out into the forest, she let out, "It's so beautiful."

Adelaide agreed with her and listened to the conversation Trufflehunter and Trumpkin were having in front of them.

"So, what are they like?" the bladger asked him, talking about the Kings and Queens.

"Malcontent. Complainers. Stubborn as mules in the morning. . ." Trumpkin could have gone on and on, but Nikabrik interrupted.

"Just like Dela, then?"

The others chuckled at this, including Lucy, and Adelaide nudged playfully at Nikabrik, "Hey, I'm not stubborn as a mule in the morning!"

"Oh, you're right," Nikabrik nodded and corrected himself, "you are stubborn all the time."

The dwarf laughed at his own words and the other did so, too.

Shrugging it off with a smile, Adelaide asked the blonde dwarf about the Kings and Queens, "So you like 'em, then?"

Trumpking considered it for a while, Lucy listening to what he was going to say.

"Well enough," he finally replied, making the little girl smile.

**A/N: Omg, so many reviews! Seriously you guys, you're so awesome and I love you all for the wonderful feedback! And for that, I feel terribly sorry for not updating any sooner and returning with such a short chapter. With school in the way and being ill, I haven't had much time for writing lately and I hope you understand this. Anyway, I feel like I should tell you guys that I'll probably won't update soon :( since I barely had time to squeeze this chapter out (that's why it's so short), but don't think that I won't finish this story. 'Cause I will, I promise.  
**

**Again, thanks for the reviews and I wish you all a good day/night! :)**


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